WaPo is giving coverage and coverage to a personal feud between Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid, as it appears they are the last “negotiating” to try and get some sort of deal on the current fiscal crisis. I could not help but think that it should not be personal with these stakes. At The Fix, Chris Cillizza and Sean Sullivan said:

Politics — particularly when the stakes are this high — is a personal business, and trust is at the core of any deal.

Trust is indeed at the heart of any deal, but personal? Trust does not always have to be personal. Trust can also be placed in law, or in some cases simple negotiating leverage – trust does not have to be personal.

I think this strikes right at the heart of many of the problems the nation faces today. We view everything on personal terms. And so, as McConnell and Reid are at personal odds, we pick sides when we should be looking for the best deal. The only consistent in seemingly any negotiation involving Obama of late is his personal view of himself. Ideas, even political stratagem, seem secondary his personal ego.

In the last election it seems clear that people voted on who they, personally, could identity with or the vote that made them feel better about themselves far more than they did on the candidates qualifications for office, or his stance on policy.

The good of the nation matters more than Obama’s ego or any personal disagreements between McConnell and Reid. They should be able to set those aside in a situation like this. It is the tradition our nation is built upon. I cannot help but think of a couple of verses of Scripture:

Prov 29:9 – When a wise man has a controversy with a foolish man, The foolish man either rages or laughs, and there is no rest.

Prov 29:15 – The rod and reproof give wisdom, But a child who gets his own way brings shame to his mother.